Door closer



H. G. VOIGHT ET AL 2,345,368

DOOR CLOSER 7 Filed Nov. 16, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 March 28, 1944.

w .wwwaw March 28, 1944. H. G.IVOIGHT EIAL DOOR CLOSER Filed Nov. 16,1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Mar. 28, 1944 DOOR CLOSER Henry G. Voightand Sigurd Brantingson,

Hamden, Conn., assignors to Sargent & Company, New Haven, Conn., acorporation of Connecticut Application November 16, 1942, Serial No.465,676

13 Claims.

This invention relates to a door closer, and more particularly to adevice designed to be secured to a door and door jamb, and adapted toeffect a controlled closing movement of the door, that is to say, thedevice acts as a combined door closer and check, in that, while itserves to positively close the door, the closing movement is so checkedor controlled that the door will be gradually closed and will not slam.

The door closer herein shown is of the same general type as thatdisclosed in the application of Henry G. Voight, Serial No. 461,423,filed October 9, 1942, as it is so constructed that it may be employedeither in a concealed position within the door casing or frame, or itmay be employed in an exposed position wherein the casing of the deviceis mounted exteriorly of the frame. The structure of the present device,however, differs in certain respects from the one shown in the priorapplication referred to, and particularly in the fact that it is soconstructed that the operation of the device may be reversed formounting upon either rightor left-hand doors by a simple manipulationwhich may be performed without removing any of the parts from thecasing.

In most door closers of prior construction it has been necessary to gainaccess to the casing itself, and particularly to the spring which urgesthe door to closed position, so that the spring.

may be reversed in order that it be wound up by a movement of the mainshaft of the closer in the opposite direction. As will be pointed outhereinafter, in the present device it is not necessary to remove thespring from the casing when making such changes as are necessary toadapt the device from a door of one hand to a door of the other hand.

One object of the present invention is to provide a door closer ofsimple and compact construction, such that it may be mounted eitherinteriorly or exteriorly of the door frame.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a door closer ofthe class described such that the operation of the device may bereversed for application to arightor left-hand door without having todisassemble any of the parts of the device.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a reversing valvestructure of novel form for a door closer.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a door closerhaving a spring to urge the door to closing position, and a rotatabledoor frame I 4, the door being shown at I5.

piston to resist or control the movement imparted to the door by thespring, wherein the spring and piston will be connected to separateoperating shafts so that the relative position of these shafts may bechanged without it being necessary to remove any of the parts from thecasing. I

To these and other ends the invention consists in the novel features andcombinations of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a door closer mounted in concealedposition above the lintel of the door, portions of the door and doorframe being shown in section;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on line 3--3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a sectional View on line 4-4 of Fig. ,1;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary bottom view of the door closer showing theadjusting nut for the spring;

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal device;

Fig. 7 is a top plan view of one of the operating shafts and the wingpiston thereon;

Fig. 8 is a bottom view of the part shown in Fig.7;

sectional view of the Fig. 9 is a sectional view on line 99 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 10 is an exploded view of the spring actuator; and

Fig. 11 is a View similar to Fig. 1 but showing the closer mountedexteriorly of the door frame.

To illustrate a preferred embodiment of our invention We have shown adoor closer comprising a casing l0 provided with a cover II and. amounting plate I2 which is adapted to be secured by screws or the liketo the lintel I3 of a To the door is pivoted at l6 one end of an arm [1,the other end of which is pivotally connected at l8 to one end of asecond arm IS, the other end of which snugly but rotatively embraces themain shaft 20 of the door closer, as shown more particularly in Fig. 6.

The shaft 20 extends upwardly through the casing and is provided with anon-circular end portion 2| upon which is mounted a sleeve 22 of theSpring actuator. This spring actuator not only comprises the sleeve 22,but a second sleeve 23 spaced from the first, and opposed wing members24 and 25. It will be understood'that the opening in the sleeve 22 is ofnon-circular shape to conform to the. shape of the upper end 2| of theshaft 20, so that the actuator will turn with the shaft.

The sleeve 22 extends into an opening 26 in the cap I I, so that thesleeve will act as the upper bearing member for the shaft 20, and a nut21 is threaded upon the projecting end of the shaft above the cap II,which nut serves to hold the cap in place at the upper end of thecasing. In order to prevent rotation of the cap with respect to thecasing, the former is provided with a lug 28 which rests in a recess 29in the upper edge the casing wall.

The casing is divided into two parts by a circular plate 3!, which maybe threadedly secured in place, resting against an annular shoulder 32formed on the casing wall. This plate divides the interior of thecylinder into a lower portion 33, which functions as a liquid reservoir,and an upper portion 34, which contains the closing spring 35. Thisspring, as shown particularly in Fig. 6, extends between upper and lowerrings 36 and 31 to which its ends are secured, whereby when either oneof these rings is rotated and the other held against rotation the springwill be wound.

The upper plate 36, as shown in Fig. 10, is provided with depending lugs38 and 39, the latter. being at a greater radial distance from thecenter of the shaft 20 than the former, and it is also provided with anupstanding lug 40 designed to rotate in a recess 4| formedin the lowerface of the cap I I. A stop 42 in this recess contacts the -lug 40 andholds the plate 36 against rotation in one direction. Likewise the lowerring 31 is provided with upwardly projecting lugs 43 and 44, the formerof which is more distant from the axis of the shaft 20, and is alsoprovided with a downwardly projecting lug 45 designed to bear against alog 46 on the plate 3I which serves to hold this ring against rotationin one direction.

It will be noted that the wing 34 on the spring actuator is somewhatwider at its lower end, and is provided at this end with a recess 41through its lower face forming a finger 41 while the wing 25 is providedwith a similar recess 48 and finger 49 at its upper end, and is of lesswidth at its lower end.

With this construction it will be seen that if the shaft 20 be turned ina counterclockwise direction looking down upon the view of Fig. 10,

the finger 49 will contact the lug 39 and rotate the ring 36, and thuswind the spring, inasmuch as the lower ring 31 will be held againstrotation by the lug 46, and the finger 4! will be turned in a directionaway from the lug 43. When the wings 24 and 25 reach a position 180 fromthat shown in Fig. 6, it will be seen that the finger 4'! will clear thelug 44, in that the latter will pass through the recess 41, thuspermitting a substantially complete rotation of the shaft 20. .If thisshaft is turned in the opposite direction, the spring will be woundfrom'the bottom by means of the ring 31, while the ring 35 will. be heldagainst rotation.

The shaft 20 is provided with a non-circular portion upon which ismounted a notched adjusting member 52 held in place by the nut 53threaded on the end of the shaft. Cooperating with the notches in thisnut are talons 54 formed at the ends of a double-armed pawl member 55pivoted at 56 on the arm I9. This pawl, and notched adjusting memberserve to connect the arm I 9 with the shaft 20, so that rotation of thisarm serves to rotate the shaft. At the same time the tension of thespring may be adjusted by moving the double-arm pawl 55 to a neutralposition wherein neither of the talons 54 are engaged in the notches ofthe member 53, at which time this member and the shaft 23 may be rotatedto give the spring any desired tension. Also when it is desired tochange the closer from a door of one hand to a door of the other hand,it will be understood that the pawl 55 will be swung so that thecorresponding talc-n will be engaged in a notch of the member 52.

As shown in Fig. 6, the casing is provided with a sleeve-like bearingmember or core 63 extending upwardly from its lower end and surroundingthe opening through which the shaft 2!] extends. Also surrounding theshaft 29 is a double tubular shaft 6 I, one portion of which is disposedbetween the bearing member 60 and the shaft 20 and projects from thelower portion of the casing and another portion 32 of which projectsdownwardly upon the outside of the bearing member 69, the two portionsof this shaft being connected together at their upper ends by the web63. It will, of course, be understood that the portions BI and62 of theshaft, and web 33, may, and usually will be, integrally formed. Toprevent the leakage of oil or other liquid from the reservoir 33,suitable packing 64 may be placed about the shaft 62 in a packingchamber in the plate 3I, and held in place by the gland nut 65.

Upon the lower end of the sleeve-like portion 62 of the second shaft issecured or formed integrally therewith the wing piston 61 having in itslower face recesses 63 and 39. This piston operates in the chamber 33and is adapted to cooperate with an abutment 10 having a passage TI]there-through, which passage communicates with the chamber through portsII and 12 adapted to be controlled by a valve I3, the position of thisvalve being in turn controlled by a screw I4 threaded into the gland nutI5 positioned in a wall of the casing, which screw has an eccentric end16 designed to limit the movement of the valve I3 in one direction orthe other, depending upon the position of the screw. As shown in Fig. 2,the valve 13 may close the port I I, but will be prevented from closingthe port I2. If the screw 14 is turned through an angle of the openingII will be open at all times, but the valve may be, moved to close theopening 12, the position of the valve being determined, of course, bythe direction of the flow of liquid through the pas sage 10 The abutmentIt is also provided with another through passage is the effective areaof which is controlled by an adjusting screw 19 threadedly mounted in agland nut 89 and projecting from the lower end of the casing through themounting plate I2 so as to be accessible for adjustment by a screwdriver or other suitable tool. It will be apparent, therefore, thatliquid in the reservoir 33 may pass from one side to the other of theabutment freely at all times through the opening 18 as restricted by thescrew 19, and may also pass through the abutment'in one directionthrough the passage 19 as determined by the position of the valve 73under control of the screw '14. In the lower portion of the casing areprovided recesses or wells 82 and 83, shown more particularly in Figs. 2and 3, which cooperate with the recesses 63 and 69, respectively, topermit flow of the liquid beneath the piston 61 when the piston reachesa point near the end of its travel to permit a quick and sharp closingof ment.

set of recesses operates when the device is used with a door of onehand, and the other set when the device is used with a door of the otherhand.

The lower projecting end of the sleeve shaft H has clamped thereon ashort arm 84 which is provided with a split end, as shown at 85, the twoparts of which are connected by the clamping screw 85 so that this armmay be clamped rigidly to the sleeve. This arm is secured to the arm l9by means of a removable pin 81, so that the arms 84 and I9 will movetogether during the normal operation of the device, thus effectingsimultaneous rotation of the shafts 20 and BI. It will be noted that, asthe shaft 20 is connected with the spring actuator, and the shaft 6|carries the piston 61, removal of the pin 81 will permit the shaft 6! tobe turned independently of the shaft 20, and that the wing piston may,therefore, be moved in the casing to another position without effectingmovement of the shaft 20, and without having any effect upon thecondition of the spring. Thus, when it is desired to change the devicefrom a door of one hand to a door of the other, the pin 81 is removed,and the arm 84 is swung about with respect to the arm 19, thus swingingthe piston 61 from the position shown in Fig. 2 to a position adjacentthe other side of the abutment 10. The opening in the arm 84 is againaligned with the opening in the arm [9, and the two arms are againconnected by the pin 81. The screw 14 is then turned through an angle of180, and this is all the adjustment which is necessary to adapt thedevice to a door of the other hand, with the exception, of course, ofthe swinging of the pawl 55 to engage the other talon 54 with theadjusting member 52.

Thus by securing the piston 61 to one shaft, and securing the springactuator to another shaft, which shafts are normally secured togetherfor simultaneous rotation, but which may be disconnected for relativerotation and for adjustment, the change-over of the device may beeffected without having to obtain access to the interior of the casing.

A spacing washer 8'! may be placed between the plate l2 and the arm 84,as shown more particularly in Fig, 6. In Fig, 11 of the drawings thedevice is shown mounted exteriorly of the door casing. The only changenecessary in such event is the removal of the plate l2 and thesubstitution therefor of the L-shaped bracket 88, which has a verticalarm which may be secured against the door casing M The operation of thedevice may be briefly described as follows: As shown, for example, inFig. 2 of the drawings, the parts are in the position occupied when thedoor has been closed. If the door is opened the piston 61 will be movedin a counterclockwise direction. The movement of the piston forces theliquid in the liquid chamber 33 through the opening 18, and also throughthe passage Hi as the pressure of the liquid will force the valve awayfrom the port ll but it will be prevented from closing the port 12 bythe eccentric end 16 of the screw 14. Thus the liquid may move withfreedom from one side of the abutment to the other, permitting easyopening of the door. At the same time the spring will be wound. If,after the door is opened, it is permitted to be closed by the spring,the piston 61 will move in a clockwise direction. The liquid in thereservoir 33 will now be moved in the opposite direction and will tendto be propelled through the port 12. This will cause the valve 13 todrop to the position shown in Fig. 2 and close the opening 1 I, thusclosing the passage 1.0 so that the passage of the liquid from one sideof the abutment 10 to the other must take place entirely through therestricted passage 18, thus cushioning or controlling the movement ofthe door.

When the door reaches a point adjacent the end of its closing movement,the recess 69 will register with the recess 83, and thus permit passageof the oil beneath the piston 61, so that the door will close with asharp final movement. If the device is to be used upon a door of theother hand, the wing piston 61 will be moved as described, afterwithdrawing the pin 81, to a position adjacent the other side of theabutment 10, which is approximately a position over the recess 82, asshown in Fig. 2. The screw 14 will be rotated through an angle of andthe action will be the same as just described except that the pistonwill, of course, be moved in the opposite direction.

It will be seen that, as the sleeve 60 surrounds the opening in thebottom of the casing through which the shafts GI and 28 extend, therewill be no danger of any leakage about these shafts. At the same timethe outer sleeve portion 62 of the outer shaft extends downwardly intothe reservoir 33 so that it may carry the piston 61, and thus the springactuator and piston are carried by separate shafts, so that, when theseshafts are disconnected as by removal of the pin 81, adjustment ofeither the spring or piston may be obtained independently of the otherpart. It will,

therefore, be obvious that we have provided a device in which theoperating shaft projects through the lower end of the casing, and at thesame time have insured against leakage of liquid or oil about thisshaft. At the same time adjustment of the device may be effected withoutobtaining access to the casing itself or disassembling any of the parts.

While we have shown and described a preferred embodiment of ourinvention, it will be understood that it is not to be limited to all ofthe details shown, but is capable of modification and variation withinthe spirit of the invention and within the scope of the claims. A

What we claim is:

l. A door closer comprising a casing, an arm rotatably connected to thecasing and adapted to be connected to the door, a spring in the casingto urge said arm in a direction to close the door. a movable checkmember in a portion of thecasing, releasable means connecting saidmember to said arm, whereby when said connection is re leased, saidmember may be moved independently of said arm, and means connecting thearm to either end of the spring whereby the latter may be wound byrotation of the arm in either direction.

2. A door closer comprising a casing having a fluid chamber in its lowerportion, a shaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a spring operativelyconnected to the shaft and tending to effect rotation thereof, a secondshaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a piston in the fluid chamberconnected to said second shaft, said shafts both projecting from thelower end of the casing, and disconnectible means for connecting theprojecting ends of the said shafts.

3. A door closerrcomprising a casing having a fluid chamber in its lowerportion, a. shaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a spring operativelyconnected to the shaft and tending to effect rotation thereof, a secondshaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a piston in the fluid chamberconnected to said second shaft, said shafts each having an endprojecting below the casing, means to prevent fluid leakage about saidshafts, and means on the projecting ends of the said shafts to connectthem together.

4. A door closer comprising a casing having a fluid chamber in its lowerportion, a shaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a spring operativelyconnected to the shaft and tending to effect rotation thereof, a secondshaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a piston in the fluid chambercon- I nected to said second shaft, said shafts each having an endprojectingv from the lower end of the casing, and disconnectible meanslocated exteriorly of the casing for connecting said shafts for rotationtogether.

5. A door closer comprising a casing having a fluid chamber in its lowerportion, a shaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a spring operativelyconnected to the shaft and tending to effect rotation thereof, a secondshaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a piston in the fluid chamberconnected to said second shaft, said shafts each having an endprojecting from the lower end of the casing, an arm secured to theprojecting end of one of said shafts and adapted for connection to thedoor, and means located exteriorly of the casing for connecting theother shaft to said arm.

6. A door closer comprising a casing having a fluid chamber in its lowerportion, a shaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a spring operativelyconnected to the shaft and tending to effect rotation thereof, a secondshaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a piston in the fluid chamberconnected to said second shaft, one of said shafts being hollow andsurrounding the other, the lower. ends of both shafts projecting fromthe casing disconnectible means for connecting said shafts and means forpreventing fluid leakage about said shafts.

'7. A door closer comprising a casing having a fluid chamber in itslower portion, a shaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a springoperatively connected to the shaft and tending to effect rotationthereof, a second shaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a piston in thefluid chamber connected to said second shaft, said shafts each having anend projecting from the lower end of the casing, means on the projectingends of the said shafts to connect them together, and means to preventfluid leakage between the casing and shafts.

8, A door closer comprising a casing constituting a fluid chamber, ashaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a spring operatively connected tothe shaft and tending to effect rotation thereof, a second shaftrotatably mounted in the casing, a piston in the fluid chamber connectedto said second shaft, disconnectible means for connecting said shafts,said second shaft being hollow and surrounding the first shaft, andhaving a sleeve-like portion extending downwardly from its upper end forconnection with the piston.

9. A ,door closer comprising a casing constituting a fluid chamber, ashaft rotatably mounted in the casing, a spring operatively connected tothe shaft and tending to effect rotation thereof, a second shaftrotatably mounted in the casing, a piston in the fluid chamber connectedto said second shaft, disconnectible means for connecting said shafts,said second shaft being hollow and surrounding the first shaft andhaving a sleeve-like portion extending downwardly from its upper end forconnection with the piston, said sleeve-like portion being spaced fromthe shaft body, and a core on the casing extending into said space toprevent leakage of fluid from the chamber.

10. A door closer comprising a casing constituting a fluid chamber, anabutment in said chamber having a passage therethrough, a rotatablepiston in the chamber adapted to force fluid through said passage, adouble-ended check valve movably mounted in said passage, each end ofwhich is adapted to cooperate with an end of the passage to close thesame, and means to restrain said valve from closing one end of saidpassage, said means comprising an abutment on the valve and a membermounted in the casing and having a lug engaging said abutment.

11. A door closer comprising a casing constituting a fluid chamber, anabutment in said chamber having a passage therethrough, a roe tatablepiston in the chamber adapted to force fluid through said passage, adouble-ended check valve movably mounted in said passage, each end ofwhich is adapted to cooperate with an end of the passage to close thesame, and means to restrain said valve from closing one end of saidpassage, said means comprising a recess provided in said valve and amember rotatably mounted in the casing and having a lug eccentricallycarried thereby to engage in said recess.

12. A door closer comprising a casing having a fluid chamber in itslower portion, a spring in the casing above said chamber, a shaftrotatably mounted in the casing and projecting from the lower endthereof, an arm non-rotatably carried by the shaft and designed to beconnected to the door, said spring being operatively connected to theshaft to effect rotation of the latter, a movable check member in saidchamber, means releasably connecting said memberto said arm whereby whensaid connection is released said member may be moved independently ofsaid shaft, and means for preventing fluid leakage about said shaft.

13. A door closer comprising a casing having a fluid chamber in itslower portion, a spring in the casing above said chamber, a shaftrotatably mounted in the casing and projecting from the lower endthereof, an arm non-rotatably carried by the shaft and designed to beconnected to the door, said spring being operatively connected to theshaft to effect rotation of the latter, a movable check member in saidchamber, means releasably connecting said member to said arm wherebywhen said connection is released said member may be moved independentlyof said shaft, and means for preventing fluid leakage about said shaft,said connection being releasable from without the casing.

HENRY G. VOIGHT. SIGURD BRANTINGSON.

